The invention relates to a catheter system for mechanical dilatation of coronary arterial stenoses, with a balloon dilatation catheter, a guide wire and a guide catheter, the balloon dilatation catheter having, for the perfusion of vessel fluid during dilatation, side openings arranged distal and proximal of the balloon and connected to one another via a lumen extending within the balloon.
Percutaneous dilatation of coronary stenoses using a balloon dilatation catheter was introduced in 1976 by A. Gruntzig and has proven to be a very effective and well-tolerated procedure. In order to lengthen the dilatation time without increased risk of ischaemia, and thereby to reduce the risk of restenosis, a balloon dilatation catheter is known having side openings connected to one another upstream and downstream of the balloon for the perfusion of vessel fluid. In this way, a blood flow corresponding to the natural pressure gradient is maintained even during balloon dilatation In this known catheter, there is the difficulty that the side openings are often blocked partially or completely by the blood plasma after a certain time, as a result of which the desired blood flow is reduced. In the event of a considerable blockage of the side openings, the balloon catheter must be replaced. The aim of the present invention is to provide a catheter system which avoids the stated difficulty.